Strange, It Sounds Familiar
by TazoClarity
Summary: Most recent update: Breath of the Wild-inspired. Link and Zelda POV. "Open your eyes."
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Little drabbles about the inter-connectedness of the Triforce's "chosen three". This was the first one. I have never written for LoZ, so if you like, let me know!

The water pounds all around me and I cannot stand any more. It is finished. The moisture in the air makes my escaping blood scarlet and runny, spreading every which way, so copious that I do not know how my heart still beats.

I am a reincarnation of hatred.

Knowing this is not something I learned, not at any point. But I _feel_ it with a certainty borne of having lived it a thousand times.

You see, I am only minutes from mortal death now. I have been defeated again. But I _remember_. I remember more than they do—perhaps because it is always my decision that prompts them to action. They sit unawares until I force them to move—to save their world and everyone in it. And I remember on an almost-conscious level.

I need only look at their faces.

There they are—just a boy, no matter how talented with his mythical blade; just a girl, no matter how noble her birth, or how far her wisdom extends beyond her years. Mere children that are delivered by the same thing that I am—the power of this relic.

There they are, sopping wet and panting, watching as their chests tremble with human breath. It is so deceiving when you know how much _more_ they are…how much more _I _am. We've lived many lifetimes and we are chosen by the goddesses, blessed by the goddesses. At least, that is what is embellished in Hyrulian history (though I am classified as some 'divine trick'. But here, I know the truth: this fate is no blessing.

My lot has been won through my own greed and ambition; I can acknowledge that. I could argue that I was created and driven by something so dark that who is to say that this was a path of my own choosing? ...but I will not. Because when you're dying, the world does not seem the same place. And ironically enough, it matters not whether it is fair.

But these two others—the princess and the boy (_the boy without a fairy, the boy without a friend, the boy without a sister…_) How can the goddesses justify their fate? Because to say that this is anything other than punishment is too much to be believed.

The Triforce has doomed them for an eternity to repeat the same cycle. And they suffer. Oh, how they suffer. The thought makes me smile.

It is terribly obvious what the boy has been through. Each and every time, he bleeds and cries out and sinks to the ground in exhaustion. He takes cut after cut and fights unspeakable monsters. He is prompted by different reasons—something is taken from him, usually. And I goad him. I capture her, I mock him with it. I come at him with a ferocity I have not given to any other man or beast. But he is essentially good, and he does not hate or take his revenge the way I would in his position. He does not know how. He is a pathetic fool. Every damned time, whether he is a hapless child or a man grown, he is a fool. Because that is what it is to be a puppet that doesn't realize their strings are being plucked.

And ultimately, those strings aren't even being plucked by me—or the goddesses, though such a thing could be argued. There _is_ something else, a kind of twisted pattern in place, and it set itself into motion before I ever vowed to take their precious, Triforce-sworn lives. Like my hatred, that is something that I can feel. I can recognize an urge more ancient than my own existence, borne with my predecessors.

He fights for _her_. His pathetic hero's heart is driven by that princess. That woman. Though he could fight for so much more.

Now, I look at her, golden hair damp and strung in long waves, her eyes shining through her weariness. She is a child, but her soul has lived hundreds of years, and she has no concept of it. She doesn't know just how many times that simple youth next to her has given his blood, his time, and his life for her. And she is just what she always is—a girl who manipulates a devotion that was cultivated millennia ago. A fallen goddess who you can look upon and marvel at nothing more than her precociousness and a beauty that isn't _quite_ ethereal.

But she has suffered in less visible ways. In every lifetime. Her guilt is what she bears most prominently—mistakes she makes because she no longer has the means to choose the way a goddess would—she is not omniscient. And I will exploit that at every turn. I revel in it.

The warrior-boy can move across time to protect her, even when he doesn't know _why_. But I will always be there, just as he is.

I will always return.

I look at their faces side-by-side as I take my temporary leave of this earth. I know it for what it is, because I see them—no, not _them_. The dripping, battle-worn Link and Zelda fade, and past them, between them, are distorted echoes. It is another time, another place. It is an _older_ time, and their faces are sharper and more discerning.

They peer through the white window like twins with their jewel-blue gazes—Zelda in a veil, and the boy in his dirty, green tunic. I see them out of the corner of my eye and I know…I _know_, that we are back—back to the first time the golden-green boy ever set eyes upon me, when I had set out to collect three stones. It was the beginning of everything, when our fates intertwined inextricably and a cycle set its course.

And these divine little spectres stare at me from behind the glass, wise to me already. They know what I am…but they've no idea how much trouble they will reap by my hand.

So I turn to look at them…and I smile.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: The last one was Ganondorf's…this one is Link's. I'm guessing that you all can guess the game universe yourselves, context clues and all. Enjoy!

There is something in my head, and I think I created it myself.

Which wouldn't be such a horrible thing if it didn't involve an obsessive image of someone I've met barely as many times as there are fingers on my hand.

Perhaps if that wasn't the case, I wouldn't be so troubled… if I had gotten to know her better, I wouldn't be able to recognize how strange we are to each other.

We are strange because we are familiar. And the image is her laughter.

I have never seen Princess Zelda laugh. Truly, I have barely seen a smile cross her lips.

These are facts…but they mean nothing to the persistent picture in my head—where her face is free and her head is tipped back and she is letting out a sweet, musical sound that lifts my heart.

It is her—it looks mostly like her. But there are differences: her hair is lighter, face a trifle rounder, her beauty makes me more joyous than it does breathless (the first time the Princess pulled off her hood, I heard Midna sigh, but somehow I couldn't find it in me to feel as awkward and stupid as I was supposed to feel…I didn't feel ashamed). When I see the Princess, there is no doubt that she is my monarch, every inch a Queen.

The Zelda of my mind…is not a queen. She is something wonderful, but I do not know what she is meant to be.

But all of these things are inconsequential, because I know just like the sky is blue, that I have never seen Princess Zelda laugh.

There has been no reason to laugh, not for a very long time. And if not for this time of darkness, I would have never even _met_ the Princess, let alone witnessed her in such a free moment.

The first time I laid eyes on her did not feel like the first time, at least like I had imagined. She is the Princess of our land, for goddesses' sake. The very idea of me meeting the Princess of Hyrule had reduced Ilia to such giggles that she couldn't speak for minutes. I am not dignified or noble. I have barely a thing to my name and the only life I knew back then was animals—tending to them and calming them. That is part of the reason Ilia and I got on so well. We shared that.

But then I picked up a true sword. And other things began to filter in; there were things that I could do and that I knew, which I had never imagined myself capable. It wasn't a natural ability (though Rusl often had kind words for me when he instructed my swordplay). There was something there that I couldn't measure or describe…but whatever it was, it kept me alive. And it was awakened.

I'm sure that many would dismiss it as a kind of an animal instinct (I _was_ an animal, after all), but it transcended that. It couldn't _create_ this sense of being what I wasn't or doing things that I couldn't. It wouldn't have made me a man that Ilia could hardly recognize. But the loss and the devastation that my heart now owned were things I could only share with two women: Midna and Zelda. And when I realized that I felt at-home when I was at _war_, I knew I couldn't linger in Ordon. And Midna was gone…

So, I can't go back. I just don't know how. But whatever it was that saved Hyrule, and Midna, and Princess Zelda, and my own life is the same thing that convinces me that I have seen Zelda's laughter. It makes me restless, and it needles at me until I have no choice but to search until I find it.

But I don't know where to start. I never have.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Zelda's turn! Again, guess which universe. It's easy.

I didn't expect the rage in Link's eyes when the crystal barrier closed in around me.

All I had known of him when he was a boy was that he was quiet, sometimes playful, and so _intense_. That intensity had served me well, too. Only a girl myself, I didn't know the full extent of the promises I had extracted from him seven years ago. I hadn't known what I was asking then. But I did know now.

As Sheik, I was able to share some of Link's journey, and with it, I realized the terrible costs he suffered, all for a promise between two ten-year olds who wanted to save Hyrule. My father didn't believe me. But the little boy from the forest did, and from that moment, he shared in the condescending mockery I had received for my dreams, and the disbelief that everyone except Impa held for my fear for Hyrule. And despite it, he still tried to save them.

Link _was_ slow to anger.

I hadn't revealed myself to him for all that time because I needed the Princess Zelda to be forgotten. Ganondorf had to be secure in the knowledge that the Royal Family was gone, and his power was firmly in place. He needed to think that Link was the only person standing against him. He needed to be caught unawares.

But I could see the frustration in those placid, blue eyes as I stepped back and away, again and again. The hero wanted to know who was aiding him. And I was familiar to him; I could sense that he sensed that.

In all honesty, I was more familiar to him than I should have been, given the circumstances. He had barely known me as a child. We were bound by our desire to save our land, but that hadn't allowed us much time to acquaint ourselves. But in spite of the tension I could read in his body when we were together—after all, he was dealing with someone who didn't seem to trust him enough to give him any more than a name (and quite possibly, a fake name at that) I would not let him know who I was. It was terrible, but necessary.

At our first meeting in the Sacred Forest Meadow, he was too startled to do much of anything. My heart was a nervous wreck, my veneer of calm only successful because Impa had schooled me so tirelessly. As I spoke to him and taught him the song, he frowned at me, like he couldn't put to words what he was thinking. He was visibly shocked when I left him so abruptly, and something still lighthearted inside of me, grinned at the prospect of this new game, but only just. Inside the volcano was the first time he tried to approach me, but I put the fire between us, anticipating that he might.

In the Ice Caverns, I knew he was working up the courage to ask the mysterious stranger _why_ he was doing so much to help…what interest did he have in helping to save Hyrule? Surely, this was more than Sheikan duty… Again, I firmly ensured that he wouldn't have the chance.

At Kakariko, he allowed me to disappear without any trouble. I think the events of the fire and the attack at the shadow beast's hands had shaken him up. But in truth, he was never fully defiant, never angry. Though I refused to tell him my name, he trusted me at his heart. When we stood companionably as Lake Hylia became beautiful again, I even thought him a friend.

And maybe we could be… Maybe circumstances had brought us together, and we weren't just simply bound by our determination to save Hyrule.

The Sage of Water, Princess Ruto, told me after her ascension, that Link was looking for me, which left me speechless. I had never given thought to the idea that he might be looking for _me_. We shared a goal, but he need not be distracted by my disappearance! She told me that she could sense his worry spiking as she mentioned my name. She even assured him that I was safe, to put him at ease.

"The Hero of Time's concern for you is….apparent," she said, and a small smile played on her face. She had made a show of mild jealousy when she appeared to him in the Chamber of Sages, but the Zora princess had amusement in her eyes as she surveyed me. "He was such a shy boy…and a bit ignorant too. He had no notion of what I meant when I told him that if I gave him the Zora Sapphire, we would be considered engaged."

My words were drowned out by Darunia's raucous earthquake of laughter, but I protested her choice of words almost automatically. "Oh, he was an innocent, Ruto. And bless him for it." The world could do with more innocence, in my opinion. And if Link could afford remain pure of heart, then I wouldn't begrudge it. I, in particular, had done enough to him.

Saria, who was nearest to me, had heard my quick defense of him anyway. "He _is_ looking for you," she said seriously, her words only meant for me, like she was imparting a secret. I looked down at her, and she smiled, showing off dimples and a perfect row of white teeth. "And I know Link, Princess Zelda. He won't stop…until he finds you."

Though I could see that Ruto especially, was curious as to just _how_ strong my acquaintance with the Hero of Time was (after all, he couldn't have spent all that time with me, running around the land to collect the Spiritual Stones the way he had), I never imparted to others the curiosity that was my relationship with the Link.

The curiosity being: we _had _no relationship, but we _felt_ like we had. I couldn't explain that to _myself_, let alone a third-party. I didn't know what the bond between the Princess of Destiny and the Hero was supposed to be, if my feeling was at all natural.

But it certainly wasn't of this world; and that frightened me a little.

And perhaps that's why I didn't expect the dark, hot anger or the ferocity; his hands pressing against my prison, so close and desperate, as if his sheer will could break me free.

Those hands…they had reached for me in the Desert Colossus. That time, I was so sure that he had discovered my identity, and I was fighting anxiety the entire time he was inside the Spirit Temple. Things had begun to unfold quickly, now that the last of the sages were being awakened.

Maintaining the disguise of a Sheikan boy took constant magic. My eye color changed, slight alterations to my form, my voice muffled and deeper…if I lost my grip for a moment, the loss of control could be the difference of what I had tried so hard to conceal. So that last time, I stood there with him after my song drifted away and as I met his eyes, I was struck by something. Perhaps it was the knowledge that I had nothing more to teach him as Sheik. Or it could have been the way he was looking at me, like he knew me. And for a moment, I _believed_ that he knew me. So I didn't move.

Then came a rush of something I couldn't name, except to call it _need_. He was close, he was within my grasp. We had been separated for so long, and suddenly it ached like never before. Suddenly, he felt more like lover than stranger, and I had this image of him running to me, sword in hand, despair on his face as I skirted his attempts to reunite with me. I couldn't do that to him. But in the context of our world, these feelings had no rhyme or reason. Still, it was overpowering.

The same thing must have overcome him too, for he took a step toward me, more purposeful than the ones before, his hand out to touch me. But the movement was enough to break the spell of our connection, and I nearly stumbled back to get away from him, sand flying into his vision as I departed. I wondered obsessively if I had ruined everything this time: if I had been unable to hold the spell in that momentary insanity.

But when I unmasked myself in the Temple of Time, his eyes flew wide open and I knew that I had managed to hold him off…. at least on a conscious level. For such an innocent, he gave me a very thorough once-over that nearly made me blush. But he was so surprised, that I chose to ignore his roving eyes. The first time I had seen him, I had to force myself not to do that very same thing. Link had grown to be a very handsome man, as hadn't escaped the Sage of Spirit's notice either.

When I stepped nearer him and explained my deception, I could _hear _his heart racing. As I quietly recalled the last time I saw him before Ganondorf took Hyrule Castle, and I could see the slight tremble in his hands. But he stayed rooted to his place, like he didn't entirely trust himself to move. I wondered why…

So I was a stupidly stunned when I found myself trapped and Ganondorf's voice reverberated throughout the temple, cursing me for a traitor. I was a fool to think that I could linger so close to his castle and still allude him. And now, Ganondorf would hold possession of two pieces of the Triforce, with only courage to stand against him. Only Link.

As he reprimanded himself for underestimating the Hero of Time, I felt something dark course through me, compelling me to succumb. I couldn't contain the scream that tore out of my throat and I heard Link retaliate against my distress by pounding impotently against my cage.

"It will not end this way…" he swore to me, ignoring Ganondorf's taunts. I could barely hear his voice. "Zelda…"

I was lifted up and away from him.

_If you want to rescue Zelda, come to my castle._

It was a challenge.


	4. Chapter 4

"Welcome to my castle."

His words were meant to incense me, and I did feel a pang as I looked around me. He had transformed my beautiful home into a house of horrors.

In a swift motion, he lifted his hand and my prison fell away from me. I sank to me knees before I could stop myself.

"Do you not like it, little princess?" There was a twisted smile on his swarthy face as I refused to respond. "Too polite to deny it."

"The décor of your…castle… is of no account to me," I finally managed. I rose carefully to my feet under his scrutiny, trying to hide my discomfort. His stare was piercing.

"You've grown quite beautiful, little princess," he said. "How time changes all things, wouldn't you agree?" He spread his hands around him, as if to encompass everything around him. I glared. He chuckled.

"I see you have little to say to me. But we are going to be here for quite some time. You see, I can't take your life, Princess of Destiny, until your hero appears to rescue you. As he most predictably will rise to the challenge."

"Why?" A thousand _whys?_ filtered through his tower, louder than the voice that birthed them.

"Why what?"

"Why not kill me?" I said steadily. "And then kill the Hero of Time after?" It was not out of the realm of possibility. Sure, it would be a low thing, but I didn't see how it was beyond him, frankly. And curiosity won me over.

He frowned at me, and I got the impression that he thought me simple. "I cannot."

I didn't feel the need to voice my question this time, so I continued to look at him, until he would supply me with an explanation. His footsteps were a dark dirge as he moved toward me. I refused to look away from his golden eyes, I would not be afraid of him.

Then he stopped mere feet in front of me and paused. "If I were to kill you now," he said. "The boy would know it."

I began to shake my head, denying his words for their irrationality, but he cut across me. "He would know it, little princess. And I'll not underestimate the Triforce of Courage again."

"So this is about Triforces…" I said.

He shrugged. "Isn't it?"

"Link is formidable with or without the Triforce of Courage."

His laugh was powerful and made me bristle. "You would say that, Princess. He is your Hero, after all."

"He is Hyrule's Hero," I said, thoroughly annoyed. "He is the Hero of Time."

That stopped his laughter, and his hand was suddenly under my chin, forcing my face up to his. "You really are a naïve little mortal, aren't you?" he murmured, something unreadable in his expression. "Forgotten so, so much. I'm…disappointed."

As he spoke, my own face reflected the pits of his eyes and suddenly, he was a monster. And a saw a ravaged world that I could hardly contemplate, and as I cried out, he stepped away from me and entrapped me once more. And he said not a word more to me, until Link careened into his stronghold, eyes blazing and Light Arrows at the ready. My terror at the hero's fate was so strong that I nearly forgot what I had envisioned in the Evil King.

But when the Triforce of Power gave Ganondorf a final form, and I helplessly watched the enormous beast tower over the swordless Hero of Time, he was that monster again.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Back to TP Link…

It was my one opportunity. I see it as he staggers back and falls, unable to keep his feet. I don't think—I just leap onto him with a yell, burying the Master Sword into its rightful place in his black heart.

Sound seems to die as he lets out a terrible scream, his mouth wide open.

I glance behind me as I freeze in my plunge and Zelda is there atop Epona, soft pity in her expression. She seems to release my final blow with her eyes, and I obediently jump back, my hands slipping off of the blade I was meant to wield.

After an eternal minute, his scream stops, and remarkably, my foe staggers to his feet, hatred in every line of his face.

"Do not think this ends here…"

My sword is still lodged in his old, glowing wound, and yet he manages to deliver one last threat. I don't move, wondering if I could withdraw it from his chest, if I dare. I feel the Princess Zelda close behind me, at my side out of nowhere. And with the three of us only feet apart, the smoking air crackles with a little more.

At the end of everything, we will always know…just enough to wonder if this power is all that we feel it is.

Of course, it doesn't end here. His threat is just a truth that we all three understand: it will never end. Here, or anywhere else.

His ragged breath fills the space between us and I wonder how many times this man has fallen to his knees before me. Have I fallen to my knees before him? Has he ever killed me too? The relief that flows through me at the moment makes me think that he might have. I weep for the world that falls hopeless into this man's dark purpose.

Zelda's hand falls on my forearm, the same way it did when she prayed to the Light Spirits, offering me calm. My mind had never felt so clear as when she asked that I lend her the last of my power. There hadn't been a choice. When I took her hand, I knew the way. And if I could fight for her, I could find a way to overcome the loss of my companion. My friend. Midna…

"The history of light and shadow will be written in blood!"

"He writes upon all of our history with blood," Zelda says, so only I can hear it. And only I would have ever understood. Her voice is unnaturally serene and almost dismissive. She has already regained her composure, knowing full well that we have won this time. She will make a good Queen. My hands are still burning, and I itch to take back my sword. As if sensing my thoughts, her warm fingers press against my arm briefly. I take a breath and the Triforce alights on the Shadow King's hand.

"Link…" Zelda sees it too. I wearily prepare myself for the possibility of a new battle. What would the Triforce of Power offer him this time?

But no… I blink and Ganondorf lets out a final groan of defeat, the whites of his eyes disturbing in his dark face. The glow of the goddesses' symbol sputters out and when his spirit dies on this earth, we both feel the loss.

His head lolls against his chest and I take a tentative step forward. I can hear the wind whistle as he breathes no more. Zelda bows her own head and I hear her mutter something like a prayer…is she thanking the goddesses or commending the soul of Din's chosen?

"He's dead," I say. My sword hisses as I slide it out of his heart, flipping it back into its sheath in one quick motion. Perhaps if I laid my sword down, it would all truly be over. I turn to Zelda, who is watching Ganondorf's still-standing corpse.

"He _is_ dead." _This time_, went unspoken. Her bright and beautiful eyes focus on me and my heart quickens. "Thank you, Link…"

"Chosen Hero…" I mutter it for her, wanting to make light of our formalities, wanting to claim what I am. My hand goes to my heart and this time, I am the one bowing. "It will always be my pleasure…to serve you." And I mean that. I mean it more than I can say.

Her gloved fingers brush briefly against my cheek as she bids me to straighten. "Thank you," she whispers.

I remind myself that I don't know this woman, whose sentences I could utter before she speaks them. But I want to know her. And I've lost a friend.

And then I see an unnatural light on the horizon.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: This is the last one that came into my head. I got the idea from Skyward Sword, so this seemed like a natural one to do… I don't know, if you like it please let me know. I could continue, I think, on this idea. But if any of you out there would like me to do a game/scene in particular, let me know! And without further ado:

"What will you do now?"

The air whistled gently around them and the last notes of the harp echoed into nothingness. It was peaceful. Link hesitated for a moment to savour the soundlessness. It had been a long time since the air was so still…

What would he do now?

"I'll stay with you." The most immediate response he could conjure came right out of his mouth, and he knew that it was right. After everything, leaving her was such an alien thought that he couldn't entertain it. Up above them, Groose and their other classmates were dots of bright color, disappearing above the clouds. That was where they belonged…in the sky, safe where Hylia left them, determined to protect her people. Link? He belonged wherever Zelda went. And safe they would probably never be.

He turned to look at her, moved by his thoughts, and she was right before him, her hair shuffling gently against the breeze… Her eyes met his and…whatever she found there, she smiled a little and inclined her head to him, for a moment seeming more like Hylia than Zelda. Because…_of course_.

"I couldn't," he said softly. She knew what he meant.

"No," she agreed, and there was something sadder in that than he expected. He wondered if it was because she knew that he would always protect her, no matter at what cost, no matter how many lifetimes he would have to span. Demise and his last, ominous words flashed briefly in his mind. Yes, he would do that. She was Hylia…but she was still his Zelda.

And she was still smiling over her sad voice as their birds climbed the skies together, leaving them finally alone. "Maybe you couldn't…"


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Breath of the Wild is an INCREDIBLE game. So I was so inspired... I have to say, I liked this iteration of her, a lovable little nerd. Good on them for giving her some great character development! Legend of Zelda isn't mine.

**Zelda**

The second time I lived a life, all that I could think about…was you.

It sounds foolish, I know. My kingdom crumbling around my ears and my thoughts consumed by a young man who slept on endlessly, a hero for once untroubled by another's plight.

That day…it was my all my fault, not yours. You must understand that. You did your job to the last…you faded in my arms only when you couldn't protect me anymore.

How I resented you when my father appointed you to me! How I disliked your curious, silent, maddening gaze…

While I donned a dress that I hated, and prayed relentlessly to silent statues with cold, remorseless eyes, you stood behind me, sacred sword in hand and face averted. I was sure you thought me a failure—that I could be of no use to you or Hyrule as I was. An heir to nothing.

So I tried to abandon your constant presence, never realizing that the one thing I couldn't run from was my own poisonous thoughts. You never hated me, did you? I hated myself.

I misjudged you, hero. I took your silence and gave it my own ideas so that I could give it a name. And it never could have worked , for once I gave you a chance, my soul recognized yours. And the coldness of being alone gave way to that recognition. Thousands of years of history utterly buried any ill feeling I could muster.

It may have seemed like I saved you that horrible day. And in the technical sense, I cannot deny that my powers developed at a most convenient time (though I would have preferred sooner, in all honesty). But why then?

The why was you, Link. I couldn't bear to see your body broken, forever shielding mine. The barrier broke at last! And even then, I couldn't revel in it. I thought it was too late. And as I wept on your bruised, cold chest, I lamented that cursed power. What good was it if it didn't give me the power to save you? What was this world without you? I would have been alone again, a stranger within it.

You can't imagine my joy when your weary sword touched my mind and told me that my power hadn't been too late. You could still be saved. And thus, so could Hyrule.

But in that moment, I was no princess or queen thinking of my country. I was just a girl…a girl that still had a friend in this world.

I'm sorry that you have to come find me one last time. It was a necessity I could not ignore.

But I hope you'll believe me when I say…I'd fight a hundred years if you would just open your eyes.

**Link**

The second time I lived… all that I remembered, I saw through your eyes.

At first, the truth of you was lost…throughout a century you protected them and who you were to the world was as lost as I was. At first, when people spoke of "Zelda", I received tales of a goddess I didn't recognize—a woman who walked into the darkness and sealed herself there in all her power, waiting for me to drive it away. I ran into a traveler who made a journey through the fabled Princess' divine footsteps. I fought and bled to the echo of her mysterious voice.

At first, I couldn't see this ethereal being that they all supposed you to be—secure and confident and never as lost as I was, never as powerless as I.

But I was not wrong. The people that lived in this ravaged land didn't know any better than I without your pictures—that once upon a time, a princess who couldn't speak to the heavens could speak to a flower and understand it. A princess who never had her trembling prayers answered, could still puzzle out any ancient riddle. A princess who couldn't prod a smile out of her father could pull more than a word from me.

That girl, the frustrated and sad and wonderful princess, I remembered.

It was only once I saw through your eyes that I saw how you resented me and I finally understood it. If I had known the extent of your pain, I could have spoken sooner. I could have told you that I was as unsure and burdened with fate as you were. And perhaps we could have taken hands before the night we died a first time and you came apart in my arms, desperation and despair raining down too fast for either of us to catch our breath. The last thing I truly remember is the light bursting forth from your hand.

I wish I could have told you—we were never that different. We had to save each other. There is no one else in this land that is doomed the way we are, to repeat a battle and face an evil that will not die. To lose time and life and limb. That weight is not easy for either of us, and even with the support of the Champions (who died because we seemingly failed) we are the only ones who carry it over lifetimes. The only thing that holds us to this earth is each other, and even then…you floated far from my reach a hundred years ago.

I fight Ganon and I remember the fallen, dirty princess weeping in my arms. I fight for her. And perhaps that is my only purpose: to fight for you—my partner in soul.

And perhaps that is all that I need.

Perhaps you will open my eyes again.


End file.
